Blog #61 - Thomas Sfraga Period 9. 06/13/2020
Thursday’s Lesson
Aim: How are the readers of 1984 warned about the power of manipulation?
To start off today’s lesson the class was presented with a Think/Pair/Share that was morphed into an entire class discussion about one's feelings and their ability to control them.
We were presented with the quote and idea:
Winston thinks, “They could not alter your feelings; for that matter, you could not alter them yourself, even if you wanted to.” Think about and discuss the nature of feelings and emotions.
- Can you alter your own feelings by force of will? Why/Why Not?
The responses to this question were rather mixed in the sense that some students believed altering you feelings is easy as you can filter the things that you want to influence you and the things that you don’t want to influence you. In turn you will ignore what goes against what you believe rather than accepting the truth. On the other hand, some students believed that feelings will always lie within a person and whether or not you want them to be there they will always exist.
- Can someone else alter another person’s innermost feelings?
Similar to the previous question the responses to this one were mixed as well. Some in the class believed that your innermost feelings can not be changed with the idea of your feelings are your feelings backing their argument, while the other side of the class believed that through literature, media, or large platforms the feelings within someone can be changed.
Class Notes/Work:
On the next slide, we were presented with the Team Work activity below:
A lot of interesting points and questions were brought up, however one that I made a note of during the discussion, was about the truth behind Big Brother. I believe that the question was phrased along the lines of, will Big Brother ever be revealed, or will their identity be shown. This question sparked a discussion within the class and soon after it was stated that Big Brother most likely does not exist and is being used as a power tactic in order to keep people in check.
Group Work:
Quick Write: The class was presented with a quick write prompt of - Record what you did last Friday morning and be prepared to share your response.
My personal response to the question was - I woke up, brushed my teeth, washed my face, and got dressed. Walked down the stairs and got myself a cup of water. After that I kind of blanked out and forgot really what I did, however because my mornings are somewhat uniform my best guess was that I walked outside and into my garage where I worked out. Then after that I made myself some breakfast.
Class Discussion:
1) Why was there such difficulty recording what happened?
There was such difficulty recording what happened that morning for me, purely because of the fact that my mornings are usually the same and don’t stray too far off from the one before.
2) Why is it so easy to forget what transpired, even though only a couple of days had passed?
For me, my routine is nearly exact to the morning before so without variation and anything sticking out to me it is hard to remember what transpired even if it has only been a few days.
3) How can forgetting leave people vulnerable?
Forgetting can leave people vulnerable as it allows for people to come into our life and lie to us about what transpired during a particular situation.
Blog Content:
What are the updates around the world/community regarding the virus?
We currently have nearly 7 million confirmed cases of Covid-19 with nearly 400,000 deaths worldwide. Although the numbers are going up it is interesting that many countries worldwide and states here in the U.S continue to either plan Phase-Based reopening plans or completely reopen. An example of this comes from China who reopened their country completely however because of a surge in cases needed to declare a nationwide “Wartime Emergency Mode” in order to stop the spread. I feel that because of this example many states here within the United States should really take notes and consider a second wave when planning a reopening.
What are you learning about your world/community based on the reactions?
I feel like purely based off of the reactions to the virus, that we as humans worldwide and in my community are able to put everything aside when it comes to one another’s safety. I feel that there was a real social shift as a result of this virus and it truly brought us all together, fighting to rid the world of this dreaded disease.
Your own personal feelings and thoughts about what is happening right now.
Currently, I am thinking more optimistic than a few months ago. The world is starting to breathe again and things are slowly getting back to the way they used to be. But it will be a long time to get there. We in New York City just began Phase 1 of the city’s plan to reopen on Monday, June 8th. It will be interesting to see how the phases play out and what benefits/repercussions there will be.
Reflection on today’s lesson:
What did I learn?
During today’s class we learned about the power of manipulation and specifically what dangers lie within the use of manipulation by the Party in 1984 to control the people of Oceania. An example of this can be seen in the novel as it is known that the Party controls and rewrites history. Because of this they can mold it in any way, shape, or form that they chose and are able to manipulate the people through that.
Why did I learn it?
I learned this information because Orwell wanted his readers to be informed of what could potentially happen if the government is given too much control. He wanted us to not be ignorant to the manipulative nature of politics and be knowledgeable of the people and decisions that could have a toll on our own live as
How will I use what I learned?
I will most definitely use this information in my life. Being well informed and not relying on other people to feed me false truths is how I will carry it out.
Enrichment Provided:
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